Mbappé hat-trick sinks Real Sociedad in Mourinho’s Bernabéu return

Kylian Mbappé scored a hat-trick as Real Madrid defeated Real Sociedad 4-1 at the Bernabéu on Wednesday in their first home match since José Mourinho returned as head coach. Mbappé struck in the 40th minute, on the hour and in the 80th minute; Luka Sucic levelled for Sociedad before half-time and Vinícius Júnior added Madrid’s other goal.

Madrid’s opening period was disjointed and met with jeers from the crowd, with the hosts criticised for a lack of rhythm, careless possession and vulnerability to counterattacks. Real Sociedad produced the livelier chances early on, keeping Madrid under pressure before the break.

The visitors carved the clearest openings in the first half: in the 10th minute Takefusa Kubo intercepted a loose pass and fed Mikel Oyarzabal, whose close-range effort was stopped by Thibaut Courtois. Sergio Gómez then flashed a volley just wide of the far post in the 34th minute as the Bernabéu crowd voiced its frustration.

Mbappé momentarily shifted the mood five minutes before half-time when Fede Valverde split the defence with a pass that sent him racing into the box; he cut left and lashed a shot into the top corner to put Madrid ahead. Defensive uncertainty returned four minutes later, however, after a long ball created an opening for Sociedad to equalise.

Ibrahima Konaté, Dean Huijsen and Álvaro Carreras were all caught out when Job Ochieng latched on to that long ball; Ochieng’s deflected effort fell to Luka Sucic on the right, who steadied himself and drilled a low shot past Courtois to make it 1-1.

José Mourinho introduced Marc Cucurella at half-time and Madrid re-emerged with greater intensity, Vinícius Júnior and Mbappé stretching the visitors with direct running. On the hour Mbappé and Jude Bellingham combined in a one-two that left Mbappé free inside the box to beat Álex Remiro with a low finish and restore Madrid’s lead.

Eight minutes later Bellingham’s pressing won the ball back near the byline and his low cross provided Vinícius with a simple tap-in from close range. Mbappé completed the scoring in the 80th minute after Vinícius slipped a clever pass behind the defence and the forward lifted a composed chip over Remiro to seal his hat-trick.

The victory was a winning return to the Bernabéu for Mourinho, more than 13 years after his previous home match in charge of the club, as Madrid recovered from a sluggish first half with a more ruthless display after the break.